The present invention relates generally to hand tools and, more particularly, to a hand tool or kitchen utensil useful in the handling and emptying of bags associated with consumable food stuff preparations such as soup or the like.
For various reasons, many commercial, retail, grocery, and foodservice providers appreciate the convenience, sanitation, and product shelf life that is afforded by receiving and handling materials in bulk volumes and that are packaged in single use bags. The bags are commonly robust so as to be puncture and tear resistant and can further be configured to withstand downstream processing or preparation, such as heating via boiling, depending on the nature of the goods contained in the discrete bags. Such bags commonly do not include an operable opening associated with extracting the goods and must commonly be cut open to extract the goods from the bag. The handling and processing of foodstuff commodities in such a manner presents various unique considerations associated with allowing personnel to prepare and manipulate the bags of commodity in a safe and sanitary manner.
For instance, during preparation for consumption of soup materials contained in single or more than single serving bags, the soup or other flowable foodstuffs is removed from the bag for subsequent processing or serving. Some operators prefer to extract cool or cold soup products from the bags prior to heating whereas others prefer to heat the bagged soup by placing the sealed bag in a heated water bath. When heated in a water bath, the bag must be removed from the water bath and the heated contents removed from the bag for serving or subsequent processing or preparation. This process leaves kitchen personnel required to interact with the heated bag and the heated contents thereof. Commonly, whether removed from a water bath or when handling a cold or cool bag, the bag is suspended over a serving container or the like and the bottom of the bag is cut thereby allowing the contents of the bag to flow into a receiving or serving container. If only a single layer of the bag is cut, the soup can flow from the bag in a somewhat erratic manner exposing kitchen staff to possible incidental interaction with the soup and/or resulting in a portion of the soup missing or spilling from the serving vessel. Accordingly, it is preferred that the opposing layers of the bag be cut concurrently to effectuate better control of the dispensing of the contents from the bag. It is further preferred that the discrete layers of the bag be cut while the hands of staff are maintained a sufficient distance from the cut opening to mitigate incidental contact between preparation staff and the flowable foodstuffs.
A still further concern relates to efficient extraction of the entire contents of the bag. Less flowable materials, such as chili or the like, have a tendency to leave a portion of the material adhered to the interior surfaces of the bag after a majority of the contents have flowed from the bag. Removing the remaining contents of the bag requires that the opposing sides of the bag be pressed toward one another and maintained in close or preferably contacting engagement with one another in a direction from the closed end of the bag toward the cut open end of the bag. Such a task is challenging when handling cool or cold bags but handling a heated bag makes it impractical to effectuate such an operation without the use of a tool or other kitchen utensils. Further, the generally suspended orientation of the bag renders counter or other flat kitchen surfaces unusable for the desired extraction of the final contents of the bag.
Still further concerns relate to sanitary and efficiency conditions associated with kitchen operations. The various interactions associated with placing and removing the bulk bags relative to a water bath, cutting an end of the bag, and squeezing the residual contents from a bag can limit direct physical interaction with the bag to effectuate the desired manipulations and interactions with the bag during the heating and/or emptying processes. The various interactions and manipulations can require use of various discrete utensils. Locating, using, cleaning, and storing various discrete utensils can detract from the efficiency with which staff personnel can achieve the desired interaction with bulk bag containers regardless of the contents of the discrete bags.
Therefore, there is a need for a kitchen utensil or bag working tool that can be used to extract, open, and extricate a majority of the contents of discrete bags. There is a further need for a bag working tool that is ergonomic and provides a desired separation between the hand of the user, the bag being manipulated, and the contents thereof.